Deputy Commissioner Cracks Down on Illegal Tobacco Sales Near Schools

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Dakshina Kannada D Santhosh Kumar mandated strict actions against shopkeepers selling tobacco within 100 metres of schools and colleges. He emphasized cancelling trade licences for violators and advocated awareness programs about tobacco's ill effects among workers, directing multiple departments for enforcement.

In a decisive move, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Dakshina Kannada, D Santhosh Kumar, ordered strict measures against shopkeepers selling tobacco products within a 100-metre radius of schools and colleges. This directive aims to curb unauthorized tobacco sales and promote public health.

During a district-level coordination meeting for the National Tobacco Control Programme, Kumar emphasized the necessity of cancelling trade licences for violators. He stressed that officials must act mercilessly against those breaching the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA).

Kumar urged the Labour Department and the District Tobacco Control Cell to raise awareness about tobacco's harmful effects, especially in workers' colonies. Additionally, Gram Panchayat Development Officers were instructed to conduct continuous operations in rural areas to combat illegal tobacco sales near sensitive locations like schools and religious sites.

(With inputs from agencies.)